1985–86 Boston Celtics season
The 1985–86 Boston Celtics season was the 40th season of the Boston Celtics in the National Basketball Association (NBA). They finished with the best record in the league at 67–15, including a 40–1 record at home (37–1 at the Boston Garden, 3–0 at the Hartford Civic Center). Those 40 home wins set an NBA record which would only be matched by the San Antonio Spurs in 2016. Widely regarded among the greatest teams in NBA history, their 67 total wins were one win shy of tying their franchise record of 68 wins set in 1972–73, and tied for fifth all-time
| 1985–86 Boston Celtics season | |
|---|---|
NBA champions | |
Conference champions | |
Division champions | |
| Head coach | K. C. Jones |
| Owners | Don Gaston Alan N. Cohen Paul Dupee |
| Arena | Boston Garden Hartford Civic Center |
| Results | |
| Record | 67–15 (.817) |
| Place | Division: 1st (Atlantic) Conference: 1st (Eastern) |
| Playoff finish | NBA Champions (Defeated Rockets 4–2) |
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
| Local media | |
| Television | WLVI (Gil Santos, Bob Cousy) SportsChannel New England (Mike Gorman, Tom Heinsohn) |
| Radio | WRKO (Johnny Most, Glenn Ordway) |
Larry Bird won his third consecutive MVP award and Bill Walton won the Sixth Man of the Year Award. The team was anchored by the "Big Three" frontcourt of Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish, which is frequently ranked among the best frontcourts in NBA history.
In the playoffs, the Celtics swept the Chicago Bulls in three games in the First Round, then defeated the Atlanta Hawks in five games in the Semi-finals, before sweeping the Milwaukee Bucks in four games in the Conference Finals to reach the NBA Finals for a third consecutive season. In the NBA Finals, the Celtics faced off against the Houston Rockets in a rematch of the 1981 NBA Finals, which the Celtics won in six games. The Celtics would go on to win their 16th championship and the last for 22 years, defeating the Houston Rockets in six games in the NBA Finals, and had won 82 combined regular season and playoff games, a record that stood until the Chicago Bulls racked up 87 combined wins en route to a title (the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors broke that record with 88 combined wins, although they infamously lost the finals).